Coronavirus crisis: Aged Care Minister Richard Colbeck ‘condemns’ comments by Tony Abbott on elderly Australians

Aged Care Minister Richard Colbeck has “condemned” comments by former Prime Minister Tony Abbott who suggested the Government should let “nature take its course” when it came to elderly Australians infected with COVID-19. While Scott Morrison said he did not think that was the “intent” of the former Prime Minister’s statement, Senator Colbeck went to great lengths to distance himself from them and repeated numerous times he “did not agree” with the sentiment. “There is no way that I think anyone in this chamber on either side would agree with those comments from former Prime Minister Abbott,” Senator Colbeck said during Question Time. “I absolutely do not agree. I would condemn the comments, that’s not what I believe, that's not what anyone in the chamber believes.” Mr Morrison earlier this year hit out against the idea of the elderly being “offered up” to COVID-19 and allowed to die as an “absolutely amoral, hideous thought”. Mr Abbott’s controversial comments were made during a speech at the Policy Exchange think tank in London. Senator Colbeck said assertions by the Opposition that he “dismissed” COVID-19 deaths in aged care were “offensive”. “I have never dismissed any of the deaths, I have consistently offered my condolences to every family that’s lost a family member in respect to COVID-19,” he said. “The misrepresentation of my comments by the Opposition... is dishonest and it’s offensive.” It comes as Senator Colbeck weathered scrutiny during the sitting fortnight following his appearance to a senate committee where he was unable to immediately provide the number of deaths in residential aged care. Labor has since been calling for his resignation, alleging he has lost “faith of the parliament and the public”.